Born in 1879 in Vladislavov, in the Suwałki Governorate of Congress Poland, a part of the Russian Empire (present-day Kudirkos Naumiestis, Lithuania),[a] he was the sixth child and third son of Duvvid Schubart and Katrina Helwitz, a Jewish couple.

His father's alcoholism kept the family in difficult financial circumstances and both he and his older brothers received little in the way of education and had no choice but to go to work at a young age.

With borrowed money, he and brothers Sam and Lee Shubert eventually embarked on a business venture that led to them becoming the successful operators of several theatre houses in upstate New York.

In 1905, Sam Shubert was traveling to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on business when the passenger train he was on collided with several freight cars.

[3] Together, although often feuding, Jacob and Lee Shubert overcame the stranglehold on the industry by the Theatrical Syndicate's monopoly under Abe Erlanger and Mark Klaw to build the largest theatre empire in the 20th century.